Tag Archives: quiet

It poured all night, large raindrops clanking on the metal roof. It was soothing, at times frustrating when I couldn’t fall asleep. The next day started gloomy but there was a freshness in the air, even Charlie the dog was excited with the new smells in the forest.

We walked the road, poking our heads here and there to check on hidden corners along the water’s edge. A few words were exchanged but we were mostly happy to be there. The place renewed us…if temporarily, but still….

Mt. Rainier National Park is a place close to my heart. I always love spending time exploring the hidden places as well as taking in the vistas available to all visitors. This day happened to fall on Mother’s Day. Heather’s mom was visiting from Ohio and we were blessed to see the Mountain on this fine day…a grand present to us all, but especially to Arlene. And for the first time, Stan got to join us on this adventure since we were not doing any hiking – most national parks don’t like to see dogs on trails, but I’m sure if they met Stan they’d make an exception as he was definitely more than that! Anyways, it was simply a beautiful time for all of us.

Oh, and the following day at Paradise we encountered two foxes, still in their gorgeous winter attire, just lounging in the gently falling drizzle. Stan focused his attention on them while sitting comfortably in the back seat, and exchanged a few words with the foxes. They didn’t really seem to even notice but we had a great time watching them and listening to what Stanny had to say!

By the way, this is a 30 second exposure at the edge of day. I loved the blue and preserved it in my final image. Sure, this will make a great black and white as well, but the blue is what I remember….

It has been cold for a while, as could be expected in the winter in the Pacific Northwest, but we’ve enjoyed plenty of sun in the last several days. But today thick dark clouds rolled in unexpectedly following a crystal clear blue morning and some white flakes began falling – whoa! what’s that?! It came heavier and the flakes began resembling mid-sized flowers. Let’s get out for a walk and see the world turning quiet….

I especially liked these wild rose hips enjoying their snow hats. How was your weather today?